Two years of ‘abnormal monsoon’ puts North Karnataka farmers in crisis: Report
Hubballi: Two consecutive years of excessive monsoon rainfall have pushed farmers across North Interior Karnataka (NIK) into severe distress, with the region recording significantly more rainy days than South Interior Karnataka (SIK) and other parts of the state.
Karnataka recorded 149 rainy days in 2025, making it the state’s third-wettest year in the last five years. While NIK logged 102 rainfall days in 2025 and 108 in 2024, South Interior SIK reported 89 and 97 rain days during the same period. The coastal and Malnad regions, meanwhile, experienced their usual average of around 160 rainy days, as reported by Deccan Herald on Sunday.
The prolonged wet spell has severely affected dry-agriculture crops of north Karnataka region, especially tur, green gram, and maize.
Data from the agriculture department, cited by DH, shows that nearly 13.65 lakh hectares of farmland were impacted this monsoon, with 70% of the damage concentrated in Kalaburagi, Yadgir, Vijaypur, Gadag, Bagalkot, Bidar and Dharwad districts.
Farmers are grappling not only with waterlogged fields but also crop infections triggered by continuous rain. Tur, a staple crop across the seven NIK districts, has been struck by phytophthora stem blight, macrophomina blight and dry root rot diseases.
Mallikarjun Kenganal, senior plant pathology scientist, said excessive rainfall has also led to nutrient leaching, forcing farmers to spend more on cultivating crops. “The long duration of rains has also adversely impacted crop growth. Tur, which had to flower by now and get harvested by December, is still in vegetative stage,” DH quoted him as saying. He added the state could witness at least 50% lower yield of tur this year.
The excess rainfall will not only raise cultivation costs for farmers but also contribute to higher food inflation.
Climate variability and shifting wind patterns are among the factors behind the increasing number of rainy days in north Karnataka. “Monsoon arrived in Karnataka much before its usual first week of June. Rains have continued till October. In a normal rainfall year, the state used to record 65-70 days of rainfall. However, this year, it has been higher in all four regions,” DH quoted N. Puviarasan, head, Bengaluru Meteorological Centre, as saying.
Karnataka cultivates kharif crops on 81.22 lakh hectares, of which more than 13.65 lakh hectares have suffered damage this year. Tur fields, spread across 5.36 lakh hectares, are the worst affected, followed by cotton (2.68 lakh ha), green gram (2.63 lakh ha), maize (1.21 lakh ha) and soybean (97,810 ha).
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Regulator DGCA eases flight duty norms for pilots amid IndiGo crisis
Mumbai (PTI): Aviation watchdog DGCA on Friday eased the flight duty norms by allowing substitution of leaves with a weekly rest period amid massive operational disruptions at IndiGo, according to sources.
As per the revised Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms, "no leave shall be substituted for weekly rest", which means that weekly rest period and leaves are to be treated separately. The clause was part of efforts to address fatigue issues among the pilots.
Citing IndiGo flight disruptions, sources told PTI that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has decided to withdraw the provision 'no leave shall be substituted for weekly rest' from the FDTL norms.
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"In view of the ongoing operational disruptions and representations received from various airlines regarding the need to ensure continuity and stability of operations, it has been considered necessary to review the said provision," DGCA said in a communication dated December 5.
The gaps in planning ahead of the implementation of the revised FDTL, the second phase of which came into force from November 1, have resulted in crew shortage at IndiGo and is one of the key reasons for the current disruptions.
#BREAKING: #DGCA relaxes a clause which debarred airlines to club leaves with weekly rest to mitigate #IndiGo crisis
— Economic Times (@EconomicTimes) December 5, 2025
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